Don't Poke a SEAL
by thatredheadgirl
Summary: It's never wise to make a Navy SEAL angry, they are trained and taught to always complete their mission and Steve is making it his mission to protect his Danno and Gracie.  Companion story to Grace Takes a Stand, could be read alone. Rated T mild swearing
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-0 or anything affiliated with the show. **_

**Author's Note:** Here it is, the next installment to Grace Takes a Stand, you do not have to necessarily read the first story to understand what's going on, but it's still a nice story to read. I'm shocked by the response that the first story got and since everyone seemed to want another story here it is. Now while writing this, a process I've stressed over for the past week and a half, I decided to split this story up into probably 3-4 chapters no more than 5, there's just so much I want to include that I thought it would be best. So I hope that you enjoy this first chapter!

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><p>Lieutenant Commander Steven J. McGarrett is a very frustrated and pissed off man. For months now he's had to stand by and watch Rachel hurt his Danno with her many threats from taking away his visitation rights with Grace altogether to sending her lawyers after him to change his already limited visitation time. He watched her dangle reconciliation in front of him, only to then take it away when Danny stayed behind to clear his name. Okay Steve will admit he was partly to blame for that failure, but if Rachel loved him half as much as she claimed to, Steve thinks she would've waited for Danny. Her marriage to Stan also didn't help anything either. She had to have known just how much it hurt for Danny, watching a woman he was still in love with marry someone who looked so much better than a detective from New Jersey. Didn't she think that upgrading in a sense would absolutely kill Danny?<p>

So in a sense it could be said that Steve kind of hates Rachel and Stan. He hates the way that they seem to dangle Grace in front of Danny using her as a pawn to hurt Danny whenever they don't seem to like how he's doing things. And if Steve has to hear from Rachel, from her own mouth or over the phone, how dangerous Danny's job is for Grace, he's absolutely going to snap because both Steve and Danny, hell even Kono and Chin, would do everything in their power to make sure that nothing ever happened to Grace. So it should really come to no surprise that when Grace comes crying to Steve about how much she hates what's going on that Steve snapped. Really he's been looking for an excuse to go off on her for awhile now and he's glad that he did it, his feelings for Danny aside; his going off on her was really just for Steve's own pleasure.

But since the moment that Steve's lips touched Danny's he was a goner, he knew that he was going to do whatever it takes to make sure that Danny's happy. His need for Danny only intensified when Steve's lips touched Danny's for the first time with their soft and exploratory kiss driven by their mutual desire and love for each other. Steve used his mouth to tell Danny all the things he couldn't find the right words for.

Since that life altering moment when Steve felt Danny kiss him back, his mind has been replaying it over and over again which is why Steve found himself sitting out on the lanai in the wee hours of the morning. He gave up the attempt to sleep hours ago because he was either obsessing over the kiss or thinking about what was going to happen with this whole situation. Sure Rachel seemed to be letting Grace cool down right now, she probably didn't even know that Danny was even here with them, but Steve knew that she wasn't going to let it be calm for awhile. So Steve, being an ex-Navy SEAL, needs to have a plan. He needs to go over all the intelligence he has from what has been going on for what he calculated the past year and figure out how to make everyone a winner, a feat which is going to be difficult to reach with the bad blood running so thickly between all parties involved.

"You keep thinking that hard and you really are going to have an aneurism." Danny joked from the doorway into the living room. Whipping his head towards the house Steve chuckled softly once he realized he wasn't alone.

"What are you doing up Danno?" Steve asked watching Danny make his way from the doorway to the arm of Steve's chair.

"I woke up and you weren't there so I went looking for you." Danny replied hoping that Steve bought his little white lie. Steve looked up at him and shook his head deciding to just it be for now. He would ask questions later. "What are you doing up?" Danny asked turning towards Steve, his eyes searching for something.

"I'm too keyed up to sleep." Steve replied resting his hand on Danny's thigh.

"You wanna talk about it?" Danny asked his eyes watching Steve trace random patterns on his skin.

"I'm worried about you Danno. You've been a shadow of yourself for some time now and I don't like seeing you so down and out. I've actually missed the Danno that rants at me and makes fun of my taste in music." Danny gasps quietly at the pure sadness and almost distress that seeps through Steve's voice. "I care about you Danny and it scares me seeing you like this." Looking up at Danny, Steve sighs and squeezes his thigh gently.

"Steve." Danny whispers squeezing Steve's hand trying to get a grip on his emotions.

"I want to fix this Danny. I want to make you feel better but I don't know how. Besides beating the absolute shit out of Stan, which I'm trying to avoid doing at all costs, I don't know how I could possibly not make this situation any worse than I already have." Danny squeezes Steve's hand again and leans forward resting his forehead against Steve's.

"I'm sorry that I dragged you into this. I don't know what to do anymore, because Stan kind of has a reason to hate me. I came in and ruined his marriage. I let my residual feelings for Rachel take over and I slept with her. I knew that I shouldn't have, I knew that what I was doing could potentially blow up in my face, but yet I did it anyway. I thought that I could show her that we could be great together again. I thought that her, Grace, and I could be a family again with the new baby on the way. I thought I could go back to how things were before, but I couldn't. I screwed this up so bad Steve." Steve's heart clenched hearing how depressed Danny sounded. He wanted to take him into his arms and make him feel better. He wanted to go back and admit his feelings to Danny, if he had manned up earlier they might not even be in this situation. Steve felt partly to blame for the mess they've found themselves in.

"Danny, nobody can blame you for wanting your family back. Hell if I were in your shoes I would have done the same thing. What happened between you and Rachel isn't just your fault; Rachel knew she was cheating on Stan. She knew what would happen if Stan found out. She's just to blame as you are. You were just trying to make it easier for Grace. I don't blame you for doing what you thought was right for your daughter." Steve paused reaching up and cupping Danny's cheek. "Nobody can hold that against you." Danny smiled softly relieved that Steve understood where he was coming from. "Is that why you've been so depressed lately, because it didn't work out with Rachel?" Steve asked his heart clenching in anticipation of Danny's answer. Even though they kissed and Steve thought that Danny might return his feelings, he could understand Danny being upset over the end of his relationship with Rachel.

"For a time I thought that Rachel and I would be getting back together. I thought for sure that we were going to get married and live happily ever after in Jersey, just like before. But when you got arrested and I couldn't leave you in there and I had to do everything in my power to get you out. I knew that by staying I would be giving up my shot with Rachel, but knowing you needed me made it worth it. I don't know how or when I fell in love with your crazy ass somewhere along the way." Steve smiled tightening his hold on Danny's cheek pulling him closer pressing his lips against Danny's. Danny leaned forward applying more pressure his hand playing with the hair at the back at Steve's neck. Steve lost himself in their kiss the passion and love expressed in this simple kiss nearing tilted Steve's axis. He should've known that kissing Danny would be this amazing, his loud pineapple hating partner was a loud intense force. Finally pulling away Steve rests his forehead against Danny's gasping for air. "I could definitely get used to that." Steve smiled and chuckled, the answer to his dilemma finally coming to him.

"Good because I plan to do it a lot." Steve replied giving Danny a short kiss leaving him wanting more. "And don't worry Danno, I'm gonna solve everything." He promised standing up and pulling his partner up from the arm of his chair and back into the house.

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><p><strong>AN 2:** I hope you enjoyed this, the next chapter will be up probably tomorrow or the day after that since I just need to figure out where to end it on my master copy of this story. Let me know what you think good or bad about this story. _**~thatredheadedgirl~**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-0 or anything affiliated with the show. **_

**Author's Note**: The response to this story has been pretty awesome and it makes me pretty happy. I hope that I stuck as close to the characters as I could and if they seem a little OOC I apologize. Enjoy!

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><p>Waking up slowly Steve smiled his grip tightening around Danny's waist his mind cataloging every little detail. He wanted to remember every sensation, every smell, every second of this moment just in case what he planned to do later on today blew up in his face and Danny never spoke to him again. Pulling Danny even closer Steve kissed the back of Danny's neck softly he finally felt relaxed and calm as he closed his eyes deciding a few more minutes of sleep wouldn't hurt.<p>

When Steve woke up some time later Danny was walking into the room with two steaming cups of coffee and a smile spread across his face. "Ah Super SEAL's finally awake. I was getting worried there for a moment babe." Danny joked smiling softly as Steve chuckled, accepting one of the mugs of coffee from Danny.

"How you are feeling today?" Steve asked sipping the hot coffee as Danny sat on the edge of the bed next to Steve.

"It's a new day babe." Danny replied glancing quickly at Steve with a small smile before taking another long sip of his coffee.

"It's gonna work Danno, I promise." Danny looked up at Steve his head slightly tilted confused as to what Steve was trying to say. "Just trust me Danno; I'm going to take care of it." Danny squinted at Steve trying to read between his words; Steve just smiled and reached over gently squeezing Danny's hand.

"For once I actually don't want to know what's going through that thick skull of yours."

"It's probably a good thing this time Danno; it's a really good thing." Danny chuckled shaking his head as Grace pushed the door open a little bit poking her head in. "Come on in Gracie." Steve called not even looking at the door to know it was her. Grace smiled and ran into the room jumping up onto the bed.

"Good morning monkey." Danny greeted kissing her lightly on the forehead.

"Good morning Danno, good morning Uncle Steve. What are we doing today?" Grace asked as she cuddled into Steve's side.

"I don't know monkey, what does Aqua man usually do on Saturdays?" Danny asked making Steve smile broadly at Danny's comedic insult.

"Well Grace," Steve started purposefully ignoring Danny, "I have something I have to take care of today, but I was thinking that I could call Kono and see if maybe she wanted to give you and Danno here some surf lessons since I know that you wanted to learn." Grace lit up at the mention of surfing and shook her head almost bouncing with excitement.

"What do you say Monkey, does that sound like fun?" Danny asked knowing full well that Grace was more than excited to spend the day with Kono. Grace nodded her head actually bouncing a little bit on the bed. "Alright you go get dressed and meet us downstairs okay? Steve and I will call Kono." Grace shot out of the bed and ran towards Mary's old room leaving Steve and Danny alone. "You're going to talk to Rachel today aren't you?" Danny asked still watching the door that Grace had just flown out of.

Steve thought about lying, thought about making up some lie about going to see Joe, but he knew that Danny would see right through it. "Yeah Danny I want to, unless you don't want me to." Steve replied giving Danny a chance to say no. He didn't want to ruin any chance he had at an actual relationship with Danny before they even started.

"Just promise me you won't take any explosives with you." Steve knew that Danny meant it as a joke but the tone of voice he used told Steve that he was actually a little concerned about Rachel's safety.

"Scout's honor Danno." Danny nodded getting up and heading into Steve's bathroom leaving the SEAL to call Kono and get ready to face Rachel.

Pulling up to the Edward's house Steve had to force himself to take a deep breath. He had to remain absolutely calm, no matter how much anger and resentment Steve felt coursing through his veins towards both Rachel and Stan respectively. Quickly punching in the code, the obvious code at that, Steve waited for the gates to open before driving the Camaro up the driveway. Taking one more deep breath Steve cut the engine and got out ready to solve this mess once and for all.

"Commander McGarrett, what are you doing here?" Rachel asked, feeling much calmer than the last time Steve had spoken to her.

"Rachel I'm here to talk about what happened the other day and what's been going on with Grace and Danny." Rachel nodded her hand subconsciously rubbing her pregnant stomach. Steve looked down feeling the anger flair up for a moment at the action.

"Please come in Commander." Steve nodded following Rachel into the house shutting the door behind him. "Would you like some tea?" Rachel asked slipping back into her prim and proper upbringing.

"I'll make the tea Rachel; you just sit down and take it easy." Steve could tell that Rachel wanted to retort, wanted to insist on doing it herself, but she surrendered happy to get off her aching feet.

"How is Grace?" Rachel asked watching Steve move easily around her kitchen as if he had been there before.

"She's doing much better; she's with Danny and Kono right now." Rachel nodded letting an awkward silence fall between them. "Here's your tea." Steve set a steaming cup down in front of Rachel before taking a seat across from here. "How are you feeling today?" Steve asked while also looking around to see if Stan was lurking around. He wanted to start out nicely with Rachel, wanted to almost gain her trust so that maybe this conversation will go smoothly. The last thing Steve wants is another blow up like they had the other day.

"Stan's at a business meeting in Houston." Rachel stated taking a sip of her tea. Steve looked at her confused. "I was married to a detective Commander." Steve smiled slightly remembering the last time that Rachel had used that line with him. Steve can also relax a little bit knowing that Stan is not within feet of him.

"Rachel you can call me Steve." Rachel nodded. "Look I want to apologize for getting angry the other day. I was completely out of line." Rachel look at Steve closely for a few moments letting his words sink in.

"I also should apologize for getting so hostile with you. I realized after hanging up that you were just merely lashing out because you were protecting Danny and Grace. It finally all made sense, you have feelings for him don't you?" Steve coughed choking a little bit on his hot tea.

"Rachel, that's not the issue right now." Steve replied looking down at his cup of tea.

"Steve its okay, sure I was angry at first and it's a little hard to think about Danny being with someone else but I'm happy that Danny's found someone who accepts him and his job. He deserves to be happy after everything that's happened." Steve bit his tongue trying to keep the bitter laughter deep in his throat. He could feel his anger swell, he could feel the condescending ice dripping from her voice.

"That's awfully big of you Rachel but that doesn't solve much of anything. You really aren't the problem, it's Stan. He's been on a manhunt for Danny the past couple of months and I can understand why in some way but I can't just stand by anymore. I've watched Danny for the past couple of months slowly become a former shadow of himself because of Stan's hateful tirades. You've sat by and let your husband completely tear down the father of your daughter. So as happy as I am to hear that you're okay with whatever's going on between Danny and I, it means nothing to me. The fact of the matter still remains that Stan still blames Danny solely for what happened when you and I both know that it takes two parties to cheat." Steve replied leaning back slightly in his chair mentally reminding himself to remain calm for Danny.

"Steve, I know that I made a mistake in cheating on Stan, but I will not have another failed marriage on my head." Rachel replied holding her hands neatly in her lap.

"So you're just going to sit there and let him do whatever he wants? I don't believe this Rachel; I can't believe that you're just going to toss Danny to the wolves like that. I thought you would have some kind of feelings for the father of your child, but I guess Danny was right about you in a sense." Pushing away from the table Steve looked Rachel directly in the eye.

"Steve my feelings about Danny have nothing to do with this. Stan is my husband and the father of my unborn child so excuse me for wanting to keep my family together, Grace and this child deserve that much." Steve scoffed glaring hard at her, a look he's pretty sure he picked up from Danny somewhere along the way.

"Grace loves Danny more than anything in the world. She came to me because she knew that I would help her get her Danno back. She's heartbroken over the way that you've let your excuse of a husband treat her father. So please save me the lies about trying to give Grace a proper family. You just don't want to admit that you screwed up yet another marriage." Steve clenched his jaw, angrily balling his fists at his side his last resort to stay calm. He could see why Danny didn't like dealing with Rachel, she seems only to care about herself and what she thought was best for Grace.

"You have no idea what you're talking about Steve. Do not think that you can come into my house and tell me how to raise my daughter. In case you forgot Grace is my daughter and I make the decisions regarding her well being not you."

"In case you forgot Rachel, Danny has just as much say as you do. He is after all the man that you once loved and had a child with. Stan might be her step-father, but Danny is her biological father and he has just as much say as you do in Grace's well being." Folding his arms Steve looked down at Rachel waiting for the next line of bullshit to flow from Rachel's mouth.

"Danny may love Grace and want what's best for her but he has a tendency to put his job before his daughter. If you will recall him letting a former convict watch Grace while he was off doing who knows what or the time that he took Grace to a football game and a shooting broke out, does that sound like a concerned father?" Steve shook his head feeling the anger boil underneath his skin. _I can definitely see why Danny gets so angry with her._

"Danny would do anything to protect Grace. He does his job to protect this island so that Grace can live in a safe place. He's puts his life in danger to make sure that nothing would ever happen to Grace. You should know that all of Five-0 would do anything to protect Grace. You need to stop using Danny's job against him; you knew what he did when you married him."

"If Danny were such a concerned father he would not have such a dangerous job and I think that Grace would be much better if she was not exposed to that danger." Steve's mouth fell open in shock at Rachel as she used her go to attack method with Danny, threatening to take Grace away from him.

"You can't take Grace away from Danny, you and I both know that doing that would kill Danny. He's been through enough Rachel."

"I'm only doing what is best for Grace." Rachel replied and Steve clenched his fist again. At the moment Steve knew that the words coming out of Rachel's mouth were most likely because of Stan and it pissed him off to no end.

"If you want a fight Rachel, you're going to get one. But I should warn you about what you're about to get into. I'm not a man to be messed with; I am a Navy SEAL who has been trained to always complete his mission. You can go after Danny all you want, but realize that I'm going to protect Danny no matter what because I always protect those that I care about." Steve stormed out of the room letting his words sink in. Rachel wants a fight and she's going to get one.

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><p><strong>AN 2:** I hope that you enjoyed this chapter of the story and thank you for taking the time to read it. **~thatredheadgirl~**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-0 or anything affiliated with the show. **_

**Author's Note:** Here's the next installment. Thank you to all the people who have put this story on their alert list and those that have reviewed it means a lot. I hope that you guys enjoy this chapter!

By the time that Steve had pulled into the driveway of his house he had calmed down considerably. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to approach Danny with what happened at Rachel's, he was unsure of how Danny would react and the last thing Steve wanted to do was upset Danny. Cutting the engine Steve slumped back in the seat trying to wrap his mind around what had happened at Rachel's. He had gone there hoping to make things better, talk some sense into Rachel if you will. But what had started out as a pleasant exchange had escalated quickly into the beginning of a war, a fact which would not make Danny happy in the least. He can almost hear him ranting about not thinking this through and how it's typical McGarrett behavior. Steve really was trying to fix things but Rachel made it so hard to be nice.

Danny stood in the front door of Steve's house watching his partner sit in the car. Judging by the defeated way in which Steve was sitting in the chair Danny guessed that Steve's little meeting with Rachel hadn't gone as well as the SEAL thought it would be. Danny didn't have high hopes for Steve being able to work it out with Rachel, he knew how stubborn Rachel was when she had her mind set on something, plus the thought of possibly having another failed marriage hanging over her probably didn't help matters. But Danny still partially hoped that Steve would be able to at least make it better, since he could charm anyone male or female if he wanted to. Sighing Danny pushed off the door frame and made his way to his car hoping to coax the crazy man out of the car.

"You know in this heat it's not a smart idea to sit in a closed car for too long." Danny joked giving Steve a small smile. Steve looked up at him and shook his head moving to get out of the car.

"I wasn't planning on staying in there all afternoon Danno; I just needed some quiet time to process a few things. Where's Grace?" Steve asked looking back towards the house for any sign of her.

"She's out back with Kono, I came in to get some water and saw you pull up and thought I would stop by and make sure that you weren't out here overheating." Steve smirked at Danny and leaned back against the now closed door of the car. "So how did tea time go?" Danny asked leaning against the car next to Steve.

"Not good D." Steve replied knowing that honesty is in fact the best policy for this situation. If he was going to get a famous Danny Williams rant he might as well give Danny the truth.

"Well babe, that doesn't really surprise me at all." Danny replied staring out across the yard.

"It's bad Danny. I'm pretty sure that my visit today made it worse and I'm sorry. I went there trying to fix it and I didn't."

"How much worse could it actually be?" Danny asked turning towards Steve his eyes squinted from the sun.

"She's threatening to take Grace away from you Danno." Steve replied bracing himself for a full blown meltdown.

"When isn't she threatening to take Grace away from me?" Danny replied his calm voice catching Steve completely off guard.

"Wait, you're not worried about this?" Steve asked whipping his head so fast towards Danny he was afraid he might have pulled something.

"Are you telling me that you, mister I have the governor on speed dial, don't already have a plan on how to make sure that I don't lose the already limited time I have with my sweet daughter?" Danny asked almost as if he had already planned this conversation out in his head. Knowing Danny as well as he did, Steve wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Danny wasn't completely prepared for this very conversation since the moment Steve walked out the door.

"Danny I care about you and Grace and I will do everything in my power to make sure that you don't loss Grace. She needs her Danno, told me so herself, so trust me Danno it's not going to happen." Danny smiled leaning over a bit and resting his head against Steve's shoulder. Steve smiled in return and wrapped his arm around Danny's shoulder.

"I wouldn't expect anything less Steven." He murmured letting the calm before the storm wash over them. Both men knew that it the approaching storm would rock them like a category five tsunami, but they were prepared, they were after all the leaders of the elite Five-0 task force.

Steve's first thought as he was leaving Rachel's was to call the governor. He knew that he was in his good graces enough that maybe he would be able to step in, much as he had when Danny and Chin had found the evidence to clear him, and possibly make this whole situation go away. But Steve didn't want to involve the governor in what had now become his own personal matter, before it was about the task force, but this time Rachel had messed with Steve and he wanted to be the one to finish this fight.

His next thought after his inner monologue about the pros and cons of calling the governor (a sign that definitely proved that Danny was rubbing off on Steve in the absolutely wrong way), is that maybe he should find a lawyer, a great lawyer that will be able to effectively fight for Danny's rights. Steve sure as hell wasn't calling the vulture that Danny had used before since everyone saw how well that guy worked out for Danny.

But Steve had no idea where to even start looking for a great lawyer, because he highly doubted that Google would be able to help him. No Steve needed help so he used his 5-0 clout and called the assistant district attorney, who was more than happy to help out her favorite task force that had saved her important case. Now bringing this information to Danny was a whole other issue. Steve knew that Danny would object to going to such a high priced attorney since Danny didn't have the money needed to even retain this guy. But Steve was hoping that maybe just maybe Danny wouldn't object to this little bit of help that Steve was offering.

"Hey babe, what have I told you about thinking too hard?" Steve looks up shocked that yet again Danny had managed to catch him off guard. "Seriously I thought you had some weird ninja sense for when I was approaching? What's going on with you, babe?" Danny asks walking fully into the room and leaning against the desk where Steve was currently attempting to type an email.

"Ha ha Danno." Steve replied looking up at the blonde and smiling broadly. It really was nice to have the old Danno back, Steve had actually missed Danny's constant cracks about well everything that Steve did.

"Seriously though what's got that Neanderthal thinking brain of yours working so hard? Is it an email from Max about well anything he likes?" Danny fires off concerned blue eyes checking over Steve for signs of anything being wrong.

"No it's not an email from Max, I'm just replying to a few emails." Steve replied deciding that 'the who' he was emailing was not pertinent information for Danny to have right now. But Steve was expecting Danny to lean over and actually look at his open email, that move had surely caught Steve off-guard usually Danny has a little more respect for privacy.

"Why are you emailing a lawyer, a very expensive lawyer at that Steven?" Danny asked his eyes flashing in slight anger at Steve's omission of all the facts.

"Why does that upset you so much Danny?" Steve countered leaning back in his chair wondering if his partner was going to make this a full blown argument. "I should also remind you that Grace is asleep just upstairs." Steve replies watching a slight fire build in Danny's eyes, which was a little hot for Steve to witness.

"It upsets me Steven that you weren't completely truthful with me. I am not upset that you are emailing a lawyer because honestly with the way that you run on a daily basis it was only a matter of time before someone came after you. So Steven J. McGarrett, are you really already lying to me before you even take me out on a date?" Steve had to chuckle a little bit at how Danny's mind seemed to work.

"I didn't lie Daniel, I merely just didn't tell you the whole truth there's a difference. Also why would you just assume that I would need a lawyer?" Danny smirked at the new almost sarcastic, slightly erotic, tone of voice that seems to be seeping out of Steve's mouth right now. Danny always did enjoy a partner that could banter with him, a practice that Steve has gotten down pat.

"You are the shot first and ask questions later type of a guy, so you would most certainly have a lawyer on retainer because of the amount of people you manage to piss off in just an hour."

"I'm hurt Danno, your words hurt." Steve replied dramatically throwing his hand over his heart turning his best puppy dog eyes on him. Danny only shook his head lightly kicking Steve's chair in the process.

"If you're not contacting an attorney for yourself, why are you contacting this attorney?" Steve sighed knowing that he might as well just tell Danny the truth.

"If Rachel thinks she's just going to take Grace away from you she has another thing coming. I asked that ADA we met while helping her secure that witness if she knew a good family lawyer so I'm just emailing them the situation and seeing what our options are that's all Danny." Danny smiled liking the way 'our options' sounded, it help to give this thing between them a more permanent feeling.

"Steven you know that I can't afford an attorney like him. I'm strapped enough as it is I really can't handle shelling out this much money. I love Grace and I want to see her, but I can't compete with Rachel like this." Danny looked down at his hands hating the vulnerability to which he was speaking with Steve. Being the oldest sibling, Danny had to always take care of himself so it was hard for him to rely on other people and he had made it this far without asking for help so he wasn't about to start now.

Leaning forward Steve rested his hands on Danny's thighs his thumbs rubbing smoothing circles on his slightly tanned skin. "I know Danny, I know. Don't worry about how much it costs okay? And don't think of it as charity because it's not. Just let me worry about this for once okay?" Danny stared down into Steve's concern and love filled eyes and sucked in his breath.

"Steve." He whispered lifting his own hands to grab Steve's squeezing them gently. "I can't put this all on you."

"Yes you can Danny. Do you trust me?" Danny looked at him his eyes expressing his concerns on Steve's stupidity.

"Have you hit your head recently? Did you forget that we are partners? Of course I trust you with my life you goof. Seriously Steven."

"So then just let me worry about this for once. I promise I'll take care of everything, it's going to get better Danny I promise."

"Alright fine." Steve smiled like a kid on Christmas as Danny leaned down and rested his forehead against Steve's. Steve pushed up lightly pressing his lips against Danny's. Sighing into his kiss Danny pressed his lips against Steve's hoping to convey all the things he's feeling. Pulling away Danny lightly caressed Steve's cheek. "Ya know Steven, maybe before we go this legal route maybe we should try talking to Stan." Steve thought about it for a moment and nodded his head.

"Are you sure you want to talk to Stan?" Steve asked concerned that letting Danny and Stan be in the same room could be dangerous.

"I don't want to drag Grace through a messy custody battle so yeah if I have to go face my biggest hater than yeah I'm sure I want to talk to Stan."

"Alright Danno, we'll talk to Stan." Steve replied just wanting to make Danny feel better, but Steve knew that the only person who was going to talk to Stan would be Steve J. McGarrett.

**A/N 2: **Another chapter done! I hope that you guys enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter will mostly likely be the final chapter of this story and it's going to have the long awaited *at least for me* confrontation between Steve and Stan. **~thatredheadgirl~**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-0 or anything affiliated with the show. **_

**Author's note:** I am amazed by the response this story has gotten, which has led me into adding another chapter so that this story will have 5 chapters. I hope that you guys love this chapter as much as the others and please don't hesitate to let me know what you really think.

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><p>Sitting outside the Honolulu International Airport, Steve McGarrett was the epitome of what the Hawaiian mentality was as he leaned against his truck in slippahs, cargos, tight fitting t-shirt, and shades. No one thought anything of him more than his being here to pick someone up. No one paid any mind to the way that Steve's fists were balled underneath his folded arms and the hard way his eyes watched the doors waiting for any sign of his target, Stan Edwards. His plane was due to arrive at any time and Steve was prepared to wait as long as possible because he and Stan had some things to discuss and Steve was way past being nice now, not after what Mr. Edwards and his wife had pulled the other day.<p>

_Flashback_

_ Steve sat on the beach watching Grace play in the low waves. Danny had left only minutes before having to run to his apartment to check his mail and grab more clothes for Grace. It was slightly weird to be hanging out on the beach watching Grace without Danny, it was felt as if part of him was missing. Sure it had been only a couple of days, two in fact, but still Danny's been such a staple in Steve's everyday routine that any time spent without him doesn't sit right with Steve._

_ "Uncle Steve! Uncle Steve! Look at the cool shell I just found!" Grace exclaimed rushing up to Steve excitedly holding a shell out in front of her. Steve smiled at her, her happiness and relaxed state washing over him. _

_ "Wow Grace, that is a cool shell." Grace smiled even wider happy that Steve agreed with her._

_ "Do you think Daddy will like it?" Grace asked wanting to give her father something that would make him smile._

_ "I'm sure he'll treasure it forever." Grace nodded and ran off leaving the shell behind on her towel so she didn't lose it setting off to find even more shells for her Danno. They stayed on the beach for awhile longer before Grace complained she was hungry and thirsty. "You really are your father's daughter." Steve joked at the mini rant Grace had given him about her hunger and thirst. Hoisting her up onto his shoulders Steve set off towards the house. _

_ "Daddy!" Grace exclaimed spotting Danny standing right inside the kitchen. Bouncing until Steve let her down she ran towards Danny excitedly showing him all the shells she had collected. "Look at what I found for you Danno. I thought you would like this because they're cool." Danny smiled softly, albeit forced, at her and knelt down looking at the sea shells in her hand._

_ "That's great Monkey. I love them. Why don't you go put them in your room so we don't lose them okay?" Grace nodded taking off up the stairs leaving the two men alone._

_ "What's wrong Danny?" Steve asked noticing the defeated look settled in Danny's blue eyes. Danny looked up at him holding a piece of paper out in front of him. Confused Steve looked between the paper and Danny's face. "Danny, what is this?" Danny's reply was to shove the paper into Steve's stomach turning and going to the fridge and pulling out a beer. Looking down at the paper Steve unfolded it his heart dropping as he read the court produced papers in his hand. "Danny." Steve whispered looking up at Danny who was slumped against the fridge. Before Steve could comfort Danny Grace came flying down the stairs firing off question after question about what they were having for lunch. Without a moment's thought Steve and Danny easily slipped back into 'everything's fine' mode and set out making an awesome lunch for Grace. As they sat and ate their lunch Danny and Steve locked eyes, Danny's eyes pleading for them to wait and discuss his bombshell after Grace had gone to bed. The paper was left sitting in the middle of the kitchen table as Steve and Danny tried to distract them and keep Grace completely unaware as to what was swirling around them._

_ Once Grace was asleep later on that night, Steve walked down the stairs a sudden sense of doom and anger falling over him. He had a vague idea of what the paper sitting on the table was, but he wasn't able to fully read the words. He knew without a doubt that the paper was not a good thing to receive and judging by the way in which Danny was willingly sitting out by the beach far away from the papers told Steve that he too was not going to like it at all. Grabbing the six-pack of beers sitting in the fridge and the offending stack of papers Steve made his way towards Danny._

_ "Here, I think you need this." Steve said holding one of the beers out to Danny. _

_ "Thanks babe." Danny replied smiling softly as he grabbed the beer giving Steve's hand a slight squeeze. "Have you read them?" Danny asked motioning with his open beer to the papers Steve held in his hand._

_ "I glanced at them when you handed them to me but other than that no I haven't read them." Danny nodded his gaze shifting back to the waves that are steadily rolling in and out. "Do you want to give me the cliff notes version or do you want to give me five minutes to read them?" Steve asked sitting in the chair next to Danny's an open beer in his left hand, his right resting close to Danny's empty left one. _

_ "She wants full custody; she's claiming my job makes me an unfit parent." Danny whispered his left hand subconsciously, on it's on accord Danny will argue if pressed, moving over and resting on Steve's right. _

_ "She's not getting it without a fight. I don't think she took my threat seriously." Steve replied his anger for Danny's ex-wife flaring up again. She was really trying to push Steve to launching a full scale attack against her._

_ "I'm pretty sure that this came fully from Stan." Danny replied smirking slightly at the thoughts that were most likely going through his partner's head._

_ "Doesn't matter who came up with the idea, those two are not going to take Grace away from us Danny." Steve replied slightly put off by Danny's defense of Rachel. How could he defend a woman that had broken his heart twice, made him believe her unborn child was his, and had even taken him from home?_

_ "Us?" Danny asked his eyebrow raised a light tone in his voice. _

_ "Well yeah Danny, I thought we went over this ya know when I kissed you? Didn't you get what I was trying to say?" Steve asked concerned that they weren't exactly on the same page as he thought they were._

_ "Yeah babe, I read you loud and clear with that mind blowing kiss outside my apartment. But ya know it's nice to actually hear the words coming from your mouth and don't think that we are not having a conversation about this relationship thing going on after we've settled this dispute with the Edwards." Danny warned lifting his now empty beer bottle and pointing it towards Steven, much like he would do with his finger._

_ "Yeah Danno, we'll sit down and you can use all your words to outline what I already know." Steve chuckled at the flash of shock and slight outrage that passed through Danny's eyes._

_ "You're lucky I like you mister because sometimes I just want to beat you." Steve smiled nodding his head in agreement._

_ "I know I'm lucky Danno, you don't have to tell me." Steve sweetly replied smirking at the slight blush that rose over Danny's cheeks. Steve leaned forward and lightly kissed Danny before switching back into serious mode. "So we'll set up a meeting with an attorney tomorrow?" Danny nodded grabbing another beer and taking a long drag from it._

_ "Yeah Super SEAL, we'll go see your high-priced attorney." Steve shook his head at Danny's blatant hint to drop the subject with his 'insult' and settled back in his chair letting the calming effect of the waves wash over them while a certain ex-Navy SEAL was planning on seeing a certain Stan Edwards. No one messed with Danny and got away with it._

_End of Flashback_

Leaning against his truck Steve stood up abruptly when he saw Stan coming out of the doors looking around for his car. Steve walked towards him putting on his most polite smile. "Stan Edwards?" Steve asked removing his sunglasses as he reached the subject of all Steve's hatred.

"Can I help you?" Stan asked looking around Steve for his car.

"I'm Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett from Five-0. I was wondering if I could have a few words with you, maybe offer you a lift home?" Steve managed with a clenched jaw and a controlled voice.

"What about Lieutenant?" Stan asked clearly not wanting to be around Steve and just wanting to go home.

"Mr. Edwards you really don't have a choice so either get in the car or I'll put you in the car." Steve snarled leaning into Stan's personal space.

"Alright fine." Stan replied Steve already leading him towards the truck. Once he was in the truck Stan turned towards Steve his confident cocky smirk already in place. "You do realize that you just gave me a hand full of witnesses seeing you kidnap me correct?" Steve turned toward Stan for a moment before laughing.

"Stan, people know me on this island. I highly doubt they think you're in any danger, they probably think you're in trouble since ya know I'm Five-0."

"What did you need to talk about then commander?" Stan asks after a few moments of silence pass between them.

"We need to discuss why you have such deep hatred for Danny and why you think you can bash on him in front of his daughter. Before you even open your mouth Stan you might like to know that I can hurt you without even taking my eyes off the road." Steve warned spying the sick smile that spread across his face as Steve mentioned Danny's name.

"Why do you care about Danny? He's a sad pathetic excuse of a man, who couldn't find any woman to sleep with him so he conned Rachel, when she was emotional and irrational, back into his bed. He's always been jealous of the wealth and success I have so of course he'd do anything to try and get Rachel back." Stan replied watching Steve grip the wheel tightly.

"Oh Stan you really are a stupid son of a bitch aren't you? Let me tell you something as someone who watched the affair transpire, Rachel went on her own accord. She had no problems admitting that she wasn't happy with you anymore. It's sad really how delusional you are Stan."

"Steve I love my wife and work hard to give her the luxurious lifestyle was meant to have and she's much happier with me than she ever was with Danny. Plus I have give Grace everything she could want and need. So really Grace doesn't need Danny in her life anymore, she has everything she needs and wants with Rachel and I. She's better off without the toxicity of Danny in her life." Stan replied already thinking how this little kidnapping from the airport was going to serve well in Stan's case for full custody. How could Danny allow someone like this man to be around his daughter? Stan thought as Steve suddenly turned the car onto a deserted side street and slamming on the breaks causing Stan to jerk forward almost hitting his head on the dash.

"Listen to me very closely Stan. You will not succeed in taking Grace away from Danny, you may think that you have this whole case wrapped up nicely and you may even use my little stunt as a ploy to show just how unfit Danny is as a father. But what you have failed to realize is just how much power I have over you Stan." Steve snarled grabbing Stan by the lapels of his suit jacket. "I am a Navy SEAL who has more connection in the government than you could possibly realize and can easily check up on everything you've done in your life. If you've so much as had a speeding ticket I'll find out about it. And trust me I have a feeling that I'm going to find something I'm not supposed to. So wipe that smirk off your face and realize that I'm coming for you. I will not rest until I've uncovered just how dirty you are." Steve replied roughly letting Stan go causing him to slam back against the seat. "You've chosen the wrong man to mess with Stan." Steve warned quickly flipping the truck back into drive and taking off down the street ready to have the son of bitch out of his sight before he actually did beat the shit out of him and if Steve knew it wouldn't look poorly on Danny's case for joint custody Steve could gladly get a boxing workout with Stan's face.

Pulling up the Edward's house Steve stopped the car and turned towards Stan. "I want you to remember Stan, if you don't want me digging into every detail of your life and possibly ruining both yours and Rachel's lives, I would drop the custody case and lay off the Danny bashing. Because trust me the longer this goes on the worse it's going to get. You will not mess with people I love and care about without a little retaliation."

"I'm not afraid of anything commander." Steve shook his head chuckling darkly and smirking at Stan as he unlocked the doors.

"I thought you would say that. I'll see you in court Mr. Edwards." Steve replied waiting just enough time for Stan to slam the door shut before peeling out of the driveway and going to pick up Danny they had a lawyer to meet with and Steve had calls to make.

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><p>AN 2: So I struggled for quite some time with the altercation between Steve and Stan, but this is just a teaser for what is to come. I'm not sure if I'm going to have Steve find anything bad when he goes digging through Stan's life, what do you guys think? Feedback and suggestions would be awesome! I hope that you guys stay tuned for the final part of this story. **~thatredheadgirl~**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Hawaii Five-0 or anything affiliated with the show. **_

**Author's Note**: I'm still astounded by the response this story has gotten, I'm so glad that so many of you have liked this story. I hope that this ending does the rest of the story justice and thank you so much for sticking with me until the end. Enjoy!

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><p>As soon as Steve and Danny returned from meeting the lawyer, Steve made his way into his office. His threat of tearing apart Stan's life is a threat that Steve plans to make good on. Since Steve cannot punch Stan in his cocky smirking face until after the custody hearing is over, Steve is going to hurt Stan in a different way.<p>

"Slow down you goof!" Danny exclaimed getting out of the car and realizing that Steve's already halfway into the building. Steve so caught up in his own thoughts stopped mid-step and turned back towards Danny giving him a silent signal that he was waiting for his partner. "What is going on with you? You've been distracted since you picked me up." Danny asked falling into step with Steve.

"I'm just processing our meeting with Chelsea today." Danny turned his eyes narrowed watching Steve very closely. Since Danny and Steve have been partners and possibly best friends much longer than they have been together, Danny can easily spot when Steve is lying or keeping things from him.

"Want to try that again babe?" Danny asked stepping quickly in front of Steve stopping him with a hand to the chest. Steve stopped looking down at the warm hand pressed against his chest and smirked.

"I just wanted you to touch me?" Steve joked smiling softly at the shocked look on his Danno's face.

"Steven." Danny warned both embarrassed by Steve's blatant attempt at flirting with him and Steve's avoidance of the question.

"Danny, it's nothing okay? I've just got a lot on my mind and I just got distracted." Danny narrowed his eyes again searching for the tell-tale signs that Steve was lying to him before shaking his head and dropping his hand.

"Alright I'll let it go for now, but you will be telling me everything you're hiding in that scary place you call a brain, got it?" Danny asked pointing his finger in Steve's face.

"Yeah Danno I got it." Steve replied grabbing Danny's finger and quickly pulling the other man close to him kissing the corner of his mouth. He had wanted to kiss Danny since they had dropped Grace off at school today and Danny had gotten sad his mind already jumping to not him not being able to see Grace anymore.

But their meeting with Chelsea Simmons, the 'high priced' attorney that Danny had complained about, had been better than neither man had hoped for. She had told them in no uncertain terms that Rachel couldn't take away Danny's visitation with Grace. The best news was that Danny had a valid case for joint custody; with Rachel's many attempts at taking away Danny's visitation and the trouble brewing in the Edwards house and Danny's more suitable permanent residence (since Steve had told Chelsea that Danny was living at the McGarrett house). Steve was happy that they had decided to reach out to the lawyer because now Danny knew that he had options and was assured that Grace would not be taken away from him.

"Thank you." Danny whispered when Steve pulled away his finger still in Steve's hand while his free hand was gripping Steve's shoulder.

"No thank you Danno." Steve replied smiling brightly at Danny. Danny tilted his head confused as to what Steve could be thanking him for but decided to let it slide because he was in such a good mode he didn't want to raise a pointless argument. "Now come on if we're gone any longer Kono's going to think we're doing something we're not and won't let either one of us ever live it down." Danny chuckled and turned around giving Steve a wonderful view as they walked back into the Palace. Once they reached HQ they split going into their different offices, Danny to finish looking over their completed reports (since he was the one that always checked them before submitting them to Steve for his signature) and Steve to begin tearing apart Stan Edward's life.

It was good thing that Five-0 had some downtime because Steve was going to need the talents of all his team members, excluding Danny, because Steve knew that Danny would be heavily against the idea of Steve digging into Stan's life. Danny wouldn't want anything else for Stan to use against him, he was just going to let this battle play out in court, but Steve was going to make sure that Stan learned not to mess with Danny ever, ever again. So while Danny was immersed in checking over the team's reports Steve began his secret fact finding mission. He had already called in some favors from old friends that happened to work in the FBI and CIA and was waiting for them to give him anything that he could go off of. Kono was also, on the sly, already doing a background check into Stan and every single person that he dealt with on a regular basis. All Steve needed was one person with a questionable background for Steve to claim that Stan could potentially put Grace in danger. Lori was looking into Stan's business contacts in the Philippines, Thailand, and Brazil for any connections to illegal activity and Steve was pretty sure that at least one of the people that Stan deals with has done something illegal at one point or another, it's almost inevitable. And when they find that connection Steve is going to be a very, very, happy man.

Danny sat in his office reading over the last of their reports chuckling to his empty office as he read Steve's account of what happened on their last case. He knew that he was going to have to reword almost everything that his partner has written, but really Danny isn't surprised or angry about this fact. He's been redoing Steve's reports since the first case that the two had worked on so Danny was way past being angry and now found it almost endearing because he would swear that Steve wrote such bad accounts of the case just so that Danny could flex this skills with words and make Steve sound like the intelligent Navy SEAL that he was, if he took the time and put his mind to it that is. Plus Steve's the one that has to sign off on every single report and Danny would much rather type and correct their reports instead of having to physically sign almost a dozen or so pages, or in this case almost 30 pages, so really Danny's the real winner here. As he finishes correcting the last sentence of Steve's report Danny smiles smugly to himself, he's going to enjoy watching Steve sign these reports (because of course the Navy SEAL can't sign anything without completely reading it), Danny's going to have a great time with that.

Looking up he watched with confused interest as both Lori and Kono made their way into Steve's office with folders in their hands. Now Danny knows that these can't be their reports because they send those to Danny electronically and he takes them to Steve. Which makes Danny want to know why they are taking folders, such as the ones that they put their reports in, into Steve's office and not his own. What are/were they working out that Danny is not aware of? Why doesn't Danny know what they're working on? He watches as the two women sitting in front of Steve's desk both hand over their folders and from Steve's closed mouth and focused face, Danny can gather that either Kono or Lori are talking about something or other. As the time ticks by Danny's confusion and anger is beginning to grow. He's annoyed that Steve didn't include him in whatever the hell he's doing, why would his partner both at work and now in life, go to Kono and Lori for something when he could have easily come to him. Danny would have helped Steve with whatever he needed. Finally Danny couldn't wait any longer and pushed his away from his desk and grabbing the stack of reports made his way across the way to Steve's office. Without even hesitating to knock Danny pushes the door open.

"Hey Steven, you need to sign these." Danny said nodding his head in greeting to Lori and Kono who, upon his entrance, began to stand. Steve looked at Danny curiously noting the distinct tense of his shoulders and the annoyed and slightly angry tone in which Danny had said his name, made Steve a little concerned for his partner.

"Of course Danno." Steve replied nicely extending his hand for Danny to give him the files. Danny, still angry about being left out of Steve's secret project, pushed the files into Steve's hand with a little more force than necessarily needed. Steve looked up surprised at the forceful gesture wondering what had happened to piss Danny off so much. Thankfully Lori and Kono had already quietly slipped out of the office leaving the two alone. "You okay Danno?" Steve asked placing the files down before addressing the now angry faced Danny.

"No Steven everything's just peachy." Danny replied occupying one of the now vacant chairs across the desk. Angry he may be, but he's still going to sit there and make sure that Steve has signed every report.

"Danny you've got a pissed off face on, so what's wrong?" Danny glared at him for a moment before huffing and plastering on the biggest fakest smile he could muster.

"Better?" Danny sneered now angry and annoyed.

"Danny, what's wrong?" Steve asked resting his elbows on the desk and leaning forward. It wasn't hard to tell that something had pissed Danny off and that Steve was most likely the cause of it since Danny had gotten worse since stepping foot in Steve's office.

"Nothing is wrong Steven, now drop it and start putting your Hancock on those documents so I can be done for today." Steve sighed and suddenly put on the pieces together, Danny had most likely seen Kono and Lori walk into his office with their findings on Stan, which Steve had only glanced at, and most likely felt like Steve was doing some secret project. Steve had probably pissed Danny off for not including him or going to Danny with what he wanted. Steve knew that Danny liked being the one that would always help Steve.

"You want to know why Kono and Lori were in here and you weren't?" Steve asked deciding to ignore Danny's angry remark. Danny didn't reply just starred over Steve's shoulder at the wall behind him. "I asked them to do something for me that I didn't think you would approve of and would probably try and talk me out of doing. You just need to know that I'm doing all of this for you and Grace and that it will only be beneficial not harmful." Steve explained leaning forward a bit and grabbing Danny's hand which sat in his lap. Danny's head jerked towards his hand almost wanting to pull his hand back from Steve's but Steve held it tightly.

"I don't agree or approve with half the things you do or ask me to help you do, but I do them anyway do I not?" Danny fought back his eyes now locked onto Steve's. Steve thought about it for a minute before nodding partly hating the fact that Danny was right.

"Do you want to know then?" Steve asked rubbing his thumb across the back of Danny's hand hoping that the gesture would help to ease Danny's anger. He also hoped that by giving Danny the option to say no that Danny would calm down. Danny thought about his request for a moment before nodding. "Now just remember I did this to help you not hurt you or piss you off, okay?" Steve said reaching with his free hand for the folders of stuff that Kono and Lori had brought him. Danny nodded again sighing in annoyance as Steve handed over the files. Pulling his hand from Steve's, after giving him a reassuring squeeze Danny settled back and opened the first file. Steve watched with bated breath as Danny read the first line of the file Kono had brought him.

"You're investigating Stan? Why are you investigating Stan?" Danny asked confused looking up at Steve waiting for his answer.

"Long story short," Steve starts glossing over his little stint as Stan's driver, "I wanted to see how we were up against so I'm looking into him and what he does. He's around Gracie so I want to make sure that he's not doing anything shady." Danny nodded seeming to agree with his reasoning.

"What happened to reach this point?" Danny asked his focus back on the information sitting in his lap. Steve hesitated for a moment wondering if he should really tell Danny everything that had transpired earlier this morning.

"I had a gut feeling." Steve replied smirking internally at his on the ball thinking. Danny had always made comments about this demented way of thinking so of course he's not going to question Steve's crazy gut feelings.

"On second thought I don't think I want to know what brought you to this step. I'm not ready to know what goes through your head." Steve smiled shaking his head and grabbing the first in the stack of files. Danny smiled softly and went back to reading the information Kono and Lori had found on Stan. After Steve signed his name on the dotted line, he glanced up at Danny concerned about the way he was completely focused on the reports in front of him. A quiet Danny was always a Danny to be concerned about, who knew what storm was brewing when Danny was quiet.

"Uh, Danno?" Steve asked hoping to get his partner's attention. Danny hummed in response his eyes still scanning the details about Stan's most frequent business associates. "You okay?" Steve asked not liking the way that Danny was biting his lip.

"I knew there was something wrong about this guy!" Danny exclaimed looking up at Steve raising the page in question for Steve to look at. "I should've known that his stint with the housing commissioner wasn't his first stint into illegal activities." Steve took the file from Danny and read what had gotten Danny so fired up.

"Of course Stan's dealings in Brazil would not be good." Steve mused softly almost as if he was talking to himself. His mind flashed back to his conversation with Stan earlier and Steve grinned. He had Stan right where he wanted him. Looking up at Danny Steve smiled when he saw the satisfied grin plastered on Danny's face. It had been awhile since Steve had seen Danny seem so happy, there was no longer a chip weighing his partner down.

"Question is what do we do with this information?" Danny asked leaning forward hoping to get Steve's opinion on the matter. "Should we call Chelsea and let her know?"

"No Danno let's not involve Chelsea. I have the perfect idea on what to do." Steve replied the plan already formulating in his head. "I'll take care of this while you pick Grace up for school. I'll meet you at home and then we order in for dinner okay?" Steve suggested getting up and making his way around the desk. Danny nodded standing as well his hand reaching out for Steve's.

"Don't get arrested." Danny joked/warned lacing his fingers together with Steve's. "I'll see you at home." Danny gave Steve's hand a soft squeeze letting Steve pull him in for a half hug before leaving the office to pick up Grace. Steve turned grabbing the file on Stan's business associates and walked out of the office, Stan had no idea what was about to hit him.

Pulling up to the Edward's mansion Steve couldn't help but smile sadistically, Stan's words from earlier playing over in his head, Stan should be afraid now. Yet again letting himself in, Steve drove his truck up the driveway and killed the engine wasting no time in getting out of the car and up to the door where he knocked harshly on the door the force from his knocking making the glass in the door shake. He was definitely going to have a good visit this time, no matter what happened Steve already had Stan by the throat. Just how much pressure he applies is up to Stan.

"Hello Commander." Rachel greeted a slight edge to her voice. Steve smiled curtly in greeting.

"Rachel, I'm here to speak with Stanley." Steve replied using his most controlled yet pissed off voice. He couldn't wait to see Rachel's reaction to Steve's findings.

"Stan, could you come out here please?" Rachel called not leaving Steve alone for a moment. Stan appeared from his office, cocky smirk in place, stopping abruptly when he saw Steve standing in the doorway.

"Why hello Commander, what can I do for you?" Stan replied as if Steve was one of his business associates.

"You can drop the lawsuit for full custody of Grace." Steve replied acting as if this were a normal conversation two people would have.

"I don't think I can do that Steve; see now after talking to Rachel I have even more cause for Grace to be here full time. Your relationship with Danny is not the best example to be setting for Grace. Your relationship if it were to be made public would make life hard for Grace. Just think of how much bullying she would suffer because her father was with another man." Steve shook his head, he should've known that Rachel would tell Stan about Steve and Danny's relationship.

"My relationship with Danny is actually a good thing for Grace. At least with us she would see what real love is supposed to be like with a stable partnership since both of us would always be with her. You see your homophobia aside, Danny and I will give Grace stability and love, which means a lot more than your attempts at buying her love. I'm not even going to bring up the instability of your and Rachel's marriage."

"Our marriage is just fine Commander McGarrett." Rachel replied making her way over towards Stan, posing in such a way that to the untrained eye would show how much they love each other. To Steve it looked forced and fake.

"Face it Steven, there's no way that Danny will stand a chance against me. He should just give up now before it gets ugly and therefore embarrassing for him. If you love him you'd advise him to put his tail between his legs and go home." Yet again Steve shook his head laughing bitterly at just how stupid Stan really was.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Do you remember our little chat this morning? How I was going to do a little digging into you?" Steve asked pulling the file out from beneath his arm. "Well some interesting things came up, especially with your Brazilian business friends." Steve opened the file open to the right page before looking up. "It seems that your friends over there have been using your company to launder their money, their drug and human trafficking money at that. Do you know how bad that is? You're putting Grace in danger by getting into bed with these people Stanley, much more danger than Danny could even begin to deal with." Rachel's face paled as Steve revealed all the ugly details of just what Stan does for a living.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Steven." Stan replied calmly as if he was trying to fool Steve.

"You can't bullshit me Stanley. I know every little detail about you, I know that you know. I bet if I were to say call these men up and have a nice little chat they would sell you out in a heartbeat. I told you not to provoke me, are you scared now?" Steve asked suddenly in Stan's face. "Now I'm going to ask, no tell you, drop the custody lawsuit. Otherwise I will have no choice to go our lawyer and give her all this information and Rachel will lose Grace forever. Do you want that to happen Stanley?" Steve asked mere inches from Stan's face.

"Grace will never be allowed to live with fags like you and Danny." Stan replied the venom just dripping from his voice. Steve snarled, his fist cocked back and slamming into Stan's face.

"I'd watch what you say Stan." Steve replied holding onto Stan by the collar of his shirt. "You never know when it's going to come back and bite you in the ass. If I hear you even mention Danny's name again, I'll gladly put you through torture training, got it?" Releasing him with a harsh shove sending him flying towards the wall, Steve turned towards Rachel who had watched in horror as Steve hit Stan. "Drop the lawsuit Rachel; you need to think more about Grace than yourself." Without waiting for her response Steve turned and left the house shaking his hand out as he walked back to his truck. Sporting a large satisfied smile Steve started his truck and heading home to have pizza with his family.

The next morning Chelsea called giving the good news that Rachel had dropped the lawsuit giving the simple excuse that she had decided it was in Grace's best interest to see her father and had even decided that joint custody would be the best option. When Grace heard the great news she squealed in delight and hugged her father tightly before running out of the house to tell Kono, who had stopped by for surf lessons the great news.

"I guess it's true." Danny replied joining Steve out on the lanai leaning heavily into him. Steve looked down at him as he wrapped his arm around Danny's shoulder holding him tightly against his body.

"What's that Danno?" Steve asked as Danny turned pressing his body against Steve's hard muscled body.

"SEALs really are the elite forces and are not meant to be poked." Steve chuckled shaking his head at Danny. Danny smiled reaching up and pressing his lips hotly against Steve's. Corny as it may be Danny's words were nothing short of true and Steve agreed by pressing his body and lips even harder against Danny's.

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><p><strong>AN 2:** There it is, the final chapter. I hope that you guys enjoyed how the whole Steve/Stan showdown played out and yes I couldn't let Steve not hit Stan. You have no idea how hard it was for me to write the hateful words about Steve and Danny that Stan said, I actually cringed writing that line but it had to be done. I hope that you like the way the story ended and yet again thank you for liking this story so much it really means a lot. **~thatredheadgirl~**


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